The 12,662-foot Borah Peak in
the Lost River Range is a
no-joke climb for the advanced
hiker. Vertical exposure along a
knife ridge scares off lots of
summit seekers, hence the name
Chicken-out Ridge. And so the
question remains, will you
chicken out? Talus slopes
require lots of scrambling as
you ascend the mountain. Keep in
mind that the snow-covered
saddle is a slippery slope and
lets up only during the summer
months. At other times of the
year you'll need an ice axe and
crampons. You can gain access to
the trailhead from U.S. 93
between mileage markers 129 and
130. Once there, drive to the
end of a dirt road marked"Birch
Springs Road." The trailhead is
33 miles south of Challis and 21
miles north of Mackay.
Retrace the Steps of Lewis
and Clark
That shiny new dollar coin in
your pocket features Sacagawea
with her newborn son, Jean-Baptiste.
This legendary Shoshoni woman,
with papoose strapped to her
back, served as a guide to Lewis
and Clark on their expedition to
explore the American west. They
reached the area that is now the
Salmon-Challis National Forest
in August of 1805. Sacagawea
helped negotiate a successful
trade for horses with the
Shoshoni. The expedition
desperately needed horses to
cross the Bitteroot Mountains.
Today, visitors can retrace the
route along the Lewis and Clark
National Historic Trail
established by Congress in 1976.
Trek into Remote
Wilderness
As the largest wilderness in the
lower 48, the River of No Return
Wilderness is home to areas so
remote that you'll need to trek
for four days to reach them.
Twenty-eight trailheads
penetrate the forest, and unless
you're hiking the popular
Bighorn Crags, it's unlikely
you'll encounter another soul.
Another option, if you've got
the big bucks, is to hire an
Idaho bush pilot to fly you and
your gear to a makeshift runway
hidden deep within the woods.
Raft the River of No
Return
Idaho has more floatable
whitewater than any other state,
and the Middle Fork of the
Salmon River is one of its most
legendary challenges, ranging
from floatable Class I water to
foaming Class IV. The Salmon —
otherwise known as the River of
No Return — received one of the
first Wild and Scenic
Designations in 1969. Fret not,
whitewater newbies — this
ominous nickname comes from the
days when wooden scows were
piloted one-way down its course
and sold for scrap lumber at
trip's end, whereupon the pilot
would return home to Salmon City
by an overland route. During the
long, warm days of summer
(expect highs in the 80s and
lows in the 50s), rafters enjoy
16 hours of daylight on the
longest (400 miles) undammed
river in the United States.
Hook a Chinook
It should come as no
surprise that there are salmon
in the Salmon River. After 1 - 3
years at sea, chinook salmon
return to their native river to
spawn. Juveniles migrate to the
ocean after 18 months in
streams, eventually returning as
adults that measure anywhere
from 18 - 40 inches. The river's
Middle Fork also offers a
variety of trout including bull,
cutthroat, rainbow, and
steelhead. But you don't have to
fish in the mainstream —
hundreds of mountain lakes,
creeks and streams offer
alternative venues where it's
just you, the fish, rod and
reel. Consider Quaking Aspen
Creek, Fourth of July Creek,
Iron Creek, and Wagonhammer
Creek.
Ski Lost Trail
Situated on the
Montana-Idaho border, Lost Trail
Powder Mountain offers
affordable skiing on 23 runs
that receive lots of powder —
300 inches on average. What's
cool about skiing Lost Trail is
that no one's heard of it. It's
Rocky Mountain skiing without
the Rocky Mountain prices or the
Rocky Mountain crowds. The ski
area sits on top of Lost Trail
Pass, at the head of the
Bitteroot Valley, and is just
off of State Highway 93 south of
Darby.
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